Dragons on the Isle of Skye
by CypressWand
Summary: Hagrid takes his students on a trip to the Isle of Skye to see Hebridean Black dragons, and we all know how that goes. (Includes use of the Scottish Gaelic language. Translation at the bottom of each page.) STORY: COMPLETE
1. The Flight to Skye

**Dragons on the Isle of Skye I**

If you are a Muggle, you would probably believe that the sound coming from above the clouds was the rumbling of nothing more than a small aircraft. If you are a wizard however, you could see that it was, in fact, a flying motorbike, followed by a large group of students on broomsticks soaring through the sky.

Hagrid raised his pink umbrella above his head and shot a green spark through the air.

'That's the sign!' Harry yelled over to Ron. 'Time to make our way down!'

Hermione, who was holding onto her broomstick for dear life, squeaked in delight. 'Finally! I thought we'd never make it.'

The group followed Hagrid as he started to descend. Beneath the clouds, they could see the Sound of Raasay flowing over into Loch Portree.

'There it is, I think,' Ron called out, and pointed to the West. 'That's got to be Portree.'

Hagrid's motorbike touched down in a secluded area of the city, followed closely by his group of students. 'Tap yer broomsticks with yer wands, and shrink 'em so they can fit in yer pockets,' he said. 'Don't want any Muggles seeing us carrying broomsticks now, do we.'

With a gentle tap of his umbrella, Hagrid's motorbike shrunk to the size of a football and shoved it into his pocket. 'We'll be staying at the Portree Hotel. It's a short walk that way over there,' he said with a nod to the left. 'Follow me.'

The students shrunk their broomsticks and followed Hagrid's massive footsteps into town. 'This is such a lovely place,' said Hermione. 'There's so much history on this island, and magic, too.'

Ron shrugged. 'I'm just here because I want to see the Pride of Portree play against the Montrose Magpies. Who cares about some old buildings?'

'You've got absolutely _no sense_ of culture, Ronald!' said Hermione, and slapped him against his shoulder. 'This island's got so much more to offer than just some famous quidditch team.'

'Who cares about quidditch when we're going to hunt dragons!' said Seamus. 'I mean, the quidditch match will be great but...dragons!'

'Can't wait to catch a glimpse o' a Hebridean Black,' said Hagrid excitedly. 'It's said they're much more vicious than the Common Welsh Green.'

'Just what we needed!' said Draco dramatically. 'Searching for dragons that are even _more _dangerous than the one you tried to raise.'

Hagrid stopped walking and shot Draco an angry glare. 'No one forced ye te come on this trip, Malfoy. Either try te behave or ye'll have te stay at the hotel until the trip's over.'

Draco raised his hands in the air and walked back to the end of the line, but it didn't keep him from muttering something about danger and Hogwarts going to the dogs.

'Don't listen to him, Hagrid,' said Harry in an attempt to sound reassuring. 'I think you organised an incredible school trip for us.'

'Thank you, Harry,' said Hagrid with a bearded smile. 'I think we found the hotel.'

The name "Portree Hotel" was written in large golden letters above the entrance, and below it was a sign that read "Antlers Bar & Grill". It was located on the corner of the street, and a warm glow was welcoming them from the inside.

'I rented two large rooms with bunk beds in 'em,' said Hagrid as he ushered the group of students inside. 'One for the boys te share, and one for the girls.'

'Feasgar math!' said a lady behind a counter and recoiled a bit at the sight of Hagrid's enormous physique.

'Faesgar math,' Hagrid repeated. 'A bheil Beurla agaibh? My students, you know; they don't speak Gàidhlig.'

The lady was clearly relieved that Hagrid didn't sound as brutal as his presence made him appear. 'No problem,' she said. 'Just write down their names and I'll give ye the keys.'

Hagrid took a moment to write down all of their names and received three keys from the hotel manager. 'Hermione, I'll give ye the key to the girls room, and mister Finch-Fletchley, you'll get the one for the boys room. I know I can trust ye both to take good care o' it.'

Hermione and Justin obliged, and took the keys from Hagrid's hands. 'I want to see all of ye down here in an hour for dinner. After that we'll go out for the...ye now...match.'

Within the next hour, the group had split up and left their belongings inside their designated hotel rooms. They had been warned to dress warmly for the evening, as the autumn weather, combined with the harsh wind rolling in from the sea, was bound to chill them on the quidditch pitch.

'What do you think, Harry, who'll win?' asked Ron as he royally started piling up jacket potatoes onto his plate. 'My bet is on the Montrose Magpies.'

'I honestly don't know,' said Harry with a shrug. 'Since we're in Portree it only seems fair I'll be cheering for their team.'

'The Montrose Magpies are the most successful team in the British and Irish Quidditch League, though,' said Hermione as she waved around with her copy of Quidditch Through the Ages. 'In here it says they've won the League Cup thirty-two times, and the European cup twice.'

'That is impressive,' said Ron with a nod. 'But the Prides have one incredible keeper, Meaghan McCormack, not to mention they've also got Dougal McBride. He likes to play it dirty.'

'McBride is the seeker, right?' asked Harry. 'It would be neat to observe his tactics and see if I can apply some to my own game.'

'I just want to look at McCormack,' said Ron with a grin. 'From what I've heard, she's quite the catch.'

'Got some good news,' said Hagrid as he joined them at the table. 'We got a clear sky tonight.'

'Does that mean we can see the players better out on the field?' asked Hermione with a raised eyebrow.

'Not only that,' said Hagrid, 'but it also means we might get te see the northern lights tonight.'

The journey to the Pride of Portree's Quidditch Pitch was an interesting one. Heavily guarded from the prying eyes of Muggles, they had to walk quite a distance until they had reached the edge of what appeared to be a small forest.

Once the first Wiggentrees came in sight, it was clear the group had truly entered a magical place.

'We just passed a magical boundary,' Hagrid explained to the group. 'If I'm not mistaken, a bit further up ahead is a Whomping Willow, who should've been put te rest while there're spectators on the pitch.'

Hagrid was right. The group did pass a Whomping Willow along the way and were suddenly blinded by thousands of golden stars that were floating around an enormous Quidditch pitch.

Hundreds of supporters were already cheering loudly from the top of the watchtowers. Most of them were wearing purple shirts with a golden star in the middle, and some others were wearing black and white shirts with a magpie embroidered on their chests.

'This way!' said Hagrid as he pointed at a watchtower on the right side of the field. 'I got yer tickets.'

The moment Hagrid had handed in everyone's tickets, the entire group rushed up to the top of the tower to claim a good seat. The excitement of the match was prominent in the air. Everyone, even Draco and the rest of his Slytherin gang, quickly fell into a cheerful mood.

The lights of the floating stars had suddenly dimmed. The sun had nearly set, and the first stars in the night sky had started to appear.

A loud voice suddenly boomed through the air. 'WELCOME TO THE IRISH AND BRITISH QUIDDITCH LEAGUE! GIVE A WARM APPLAUSE TO OUR GUESTS, THE MONTROSE MAGPIES!'

'I wish I had a pair of binoculars so I could see better,' said Harry as the presenter started listing off the player's names.

'Me too,' said Ron. 'Or better yet, omnioculars!'

Harry was about to ask what omnioculars are, when the presenter's voice started booming again. 'THE CAPTAINS OF EACH TEAM HAVE SHAKEN HANDS AND TAKEN POSITION. LET THE GAME, BEGIN!'

With the speed of light, the players of both teams sped off. The Magpies had quickly managed to snatch the quaffle, but were prevented from scoring by a beautiful safe from Meaghan McCormack.

'She's brilliant,' said Ron. 'You think she might be single?'

Hermione let out a loud sigh and rolled her eyes. 'I'm sure she's a bit too old for you, Ronald.'

In the meantime, Harry had been searching the air for the snitch in vain. Just like many other supporters on the field, he got distracted by the sudden flashes of green light in the darkening sky. The northern lights had come.

A chaser from the Prides had managed to score a goal now that the attention from the game was drawn away, but the presenter didn't even make a mention of it. Something in the sky had caught everyone's attention, and it wasn't good.

Ron's face had started to look paler than usual. 'What do you think that shadow is?' he whimpered.

A black shadow darkened the pitch from the northern lights above, followed by a screech so loud and rusty, everyone clapped their hands to their ears for protection.

Malfoy was the first to start screaming. 'It's a dragon! IT'S A BLOODY DRAGON!'

* * *

A/N Sound of Raasay is the name of the waters between the isle of Raasay and the isle of Skye.

A/N Feasgar math!: Good evening!

A bheil Beurla agaibh?: Do you speak English?

Gàidhlig: Scottish Gaelic


	2. The Hebridean Black dragon

**Dragons on the Isle of Skye II**

'O mo chreach sa thàinig!' someone yelled from a seat in the back. 'It truly is a dragon!'

All of the players had suddenly vanished off the field. Screams of terror echoed through the pitch as the spectators tried to push their way down the watchtowers.

'Someone lift the apparition barrier!' a spectator yelled. 'We need to get out!'

'Follow me!' yelled Hagrid. 'Make sure ye don't lose me out of sight!'

'How did it even get here?' asked Hermione in a fit of panic. 'Aren't they supposed to be in the mountains down South?'

'I don't know,' said Hagrid, ushering the students to keep running after him. 'The MacFustys are supposed to have 'em under control. This one might've escaped!'

'What do we do now?' Malfoy panicked. 'I don't want to die like this!'

Several lightening fast broomsticks suddenly flew by. 'Keep throwin' stunners!' some yelled from above. 'We need to take her down before she reaches Portree!'

'I have an idea!' yelled Harry. 'How many of you still got their broomsticks in their pockets?'

About half of the students raised their small versions of their broomsticks up in the air. 'If you don't have one, share with someone else,' ordered Harry. 'Hagrid, lead them all back to the hotel. Ron, make sure Hermione gets back safe.'

'And what do you plan on doing, mate?' Ron asked.

'Go help the dragon chasers of course!' said Harry as he swung a leg over his Nimbus 2000. 'Someone needs to go stun that thing before it burns down the entire city!'

'I'm coming with you Harry!' said Ron, and Harry knew that Ron's statement could not be argued with. 'Hermione, please follow Hagrid back to the hotel!'

Before Hermione could start an argument, Harry and Ron sped off to chase after the escaped dragon.

'Come back here!' Hagrid ordered, but the two friends didn't listen. Harry's Nimbus 2000 quickly caught up with the group that was chasing after the dragon. Judging by their tartan outfits, they had to be members of the MacFusty clan.

The dragon struck an impressive sight against the the sky. The green hue coming from the northern light reflected on her black scaly hide. Her enormous bat-like wings and arrow shaped tail glided gracefully through the air as she let out another ear-splitting screech.

'Ron, you go to the left,' yelled Harry. 'I'll take my position on the right and start throwing stunning spells at the dragon!'

'Aim for the eyes!' Ron yelled after him. 'It's their weakest point!'

Harry caught up with a red-headed witch from the MacFusty clan. 'You shouldn't be here lad!' she said, looking at Harry in shock. 'It's too dangerous!'

'That's not important right now!' said Harry as he pulled his wand from his pocket. 'Count from three to one! If we can stun the dragon at the same time we might be able to bring her down!'

'Clan!' ordered the red-headed witch. 'trì...dhà...aon...TEINTE!'

The entire clan, including several people who were running in between the woods down below, shot stunning spells at the dragon. Harry had managed to shoot the spell straight into the dragon's deep purple eye. The dragon cried out in pain, and from the depths of her throat a blue flame arose.

'Everybody go up!' yelled a member of clan from the other side of the dragon.

Harry had pointed his broomstick upwards just in time, because the dragon spew a soaring hot flame, setting fire to a part of the forest below.

'Try again!' yelled the witch. 'trì...dhà...aon...TEINTE!'

Even more stunners were shot into the sky from below. This time the dragon lost control of her wings, and started to plummet down.

Harry could see Hermione's bushy hair moving fast among the trees. '_Spongify_!' she said, and pointed her wand towards the ground. The dragon hit several trees on her way down, and bounced softly onto the rubbery soil.

With a few more stunners casted at the dragon, they knew for certain that she had been numbed.

Hagrid, Hermione and several other spectators had already started taking care of the fire that was quickly spreading amongst the trees, while Harry, Ron and the members of the MacFusty clan made their way down to take a closer look at the dragon.

The dragon was lying still, with her wings curled up around her body. 'Poor lass,' said the red-haired witch. 'It's always heartbreaking when we need to take one down.'

'What happened, exactly?' asked Harry, only just realising that he had been holding his breath the entire time.

'She got rejected by a mate,' said the witch, and petted the dragon on the head. 'They tend to get a bit angry when that happens. Looks like we'll be obliviating Muggles again.'

Other members of the clan tied the dragon down with magical ropes and shackles to prevent her from rising up again. Hagrid, along with Hermione and the others, came back after the fire had been extinguished.

'Bloody hell, Harry, and Ron!' said Hagrid angrily, and pulled them both into a bone-crushing hug. 'That was highly irresponsible from the both of ye!'

'Sorry Hagrid,' they mumbled.

'Aah it's alright,' said Hagrid, releasing them, and looked at his students with pride. 'The rest o' the students have made it safely back to the hotel, I think.'

The witch extended a hand to Hermione. 'Thank you for saving our dragon,' she said. 'Don't know what would've happened if she had crashed down too hard.'

Hermione's face flushed a violent shade of red. 'No problem, ma'am. It was the least I could do.'

'Isn't she a beauty,' said Hagrid. He looked at the dragon with the same kind of love he had had for Norbert. 'Does she have a name?'

'Her name is Balaur,' said the witch. 'We'll make sure she's placed back in the mountains down South where she belongs.'

Hagrid started talking in rapid Gaelic with the clan, and Hermione turned to Harry and Ron. 'Idiots!' she snapped furiously, and slapped them both against the back of their heads. 'You could've been injured. Or worse... you could've been killed!'

'Glad to see you got your priorities straight 'mione,' said Ron as he ruffled her hair. 'At least the city didn't burn down.'

'And I suppose very few Muggles have seen her,' added Harry. 'Can't imagine the responses if she suddenly showed up in the city's centre.'

Like Hagrid, Hermione pulled both of her friends into an embrace. 'I'm just glad both of you are alright,' she said with a sigh. Looking back at the dragon, she said, 'She really is a beauty, isn't she?'

'You think there'll be a re-match tomorrow?' asked Ron. 'Bit of a shame the match had to end this way.'

'Looks like _you_ haven't entirely got your priorities straight,' said Hermione, shaking her head, a smug look on her face.

Harry looked at his friends in a serious manner. 'I think we there's a whole other dragon we need to start worrying about.'

'Another dragon?' asked Ron with a raised eyebrow and started to search the sky as if he somehow expected another dragon to show up. 'What other dragon?'

'He means Malfoy you nitwit,' said Hermione. 'And you're right Harry. _His father is going to hear about this._'

The three friends burst out in a fit of laughter. 'I know this is supposed to be a serious problem,' said Ron as he wiped away a tear from the corner of his eye, 'but Malfoy's reaction on seeing the dragon was priceless.'

'We better go back,' said Harry. 'I'm sure Hagrid wants to go check on the rest of the group.'

And so, the three friends joined Hagrid and shared their goodbyes with the stunned dragon. Hiding in the shadows of a bush nearby was a large black dog observing the entire scene. Coming out of his hiding place in order to help would have been a foolish thing to do, and so instead, he was forced to watch helplessly as his godson put his life on the line once again. He grinned as wide as his dog state allowed, his yellow eyes gleaming with pride.

* * *

A/N: Mo chreach: My goodness/Good heavens etc.

O mo chreach sa thàinig!: Literally "Oh my very destruction has come!"

'trì...dhà...aon...teine!': "three...two...one...fire!"

A/N: Balaur is Romanian for Dragon. It's a bit of a wink to Charlie as he works in Romania with dragons.


End file.
